Revealed: How Paul Kent is returning to the airwaves after footy commentator was sacked over pub street fight

Paul Kent is making a comeback as a sports commentator on an Australian cricket legend’s podcast after being fired from his high-profile roles at Foxtel and News Corp over his infamous drunken street brawl.

The former NRL 360 star was suspended on May 30 this year while appearing in court on a charge of affray after a street fight outside a western Sydney pub left him injured when he was thrown into a tree.

The veteran rugby league journalist was also sacked by News Corp for seven months in 2023 while facing domestic violence charges, which were later dismissed.

Now the 55-year-old has surfaced as an upcoming guest on How’s That? from cricket great Mike Whitney? podcast, which also features big names such as cult hero fast bowler Lenny Pascoe, legendary batsman Doug Walters, football great Mark Carroll and musician Angry Anderson.

It’s believed the episode featuring Kent will be available from February and will feature a “chat about his story and what he’s been up to since #NRL360,” complete with some “interesting stories,” according to the podcast’s TikTok.

The appearance on Whitney’s show is Kent’s first media appearance since his career was derailed this year.

According to a promotion for the How’s That? podcast, in the episode Kent tells some ‘interesting stories’ about what he’s been up to since being fired from the NRL 360 TV show

He reportedly settled his unfair dismissal case against News Corp in September after pleading guilty to the affray charge and being given a good behavior bond.

Kent called his firing a “sham” when he filed the case and said he believed he had not been given a fair opportunity to tell his version of events.

The documents filed by his legal team also reportedly stated that Kent was unhappy that he was not given the presumption of innocence during the domestic abuse court hearings and lost seven months of income.

According to his claim, Kent had also been privately dealing with a diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome for almost a decade, and his legal team said the condition is a disability under the law.

The former Parramatta Eels player said he disclosed his Asperger’s diagnosis to his former employer about nine years ago.

News Corp disputed that Kent informed the company of his diagnosis in or around 2015 and denied that the company discriminated against him based on that disability.

In deciding not to impose a conviction on the affray charge arising from the street brawl, Magistrate Jennifer Price took into account that Kent was suffering from severe depression and alcohol use disorder at the time of the incident.

Kent (pictured outside court in May last year) has reportedly settled his unfair dismissal claim against News Corp

The veteran football pundit is pictured (centre) hitting his head on a gutter after being thrown into a tree during the fight on April 27 this year

During the course of the case, Kent said he informed News that he was incapacitated and receiving mental health treatment when the company asked him on May 23 to show cause why his employment should not be terminated.

Mr Kent said his dismissal dates back to when he was wrongly accused of attacking his former partner Lucy Kennedy at his Lilyfield home on May 12 last year.

Kent pleaded not guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm, common assault and choking a person without consent. All charges were dismissed at Downing Center Local Court last December.

He also worked briefly as a part-time limousine driver for a funeral company in Sydney’s west when he was fired over domestic violence allegations.

Kent was seen hitting his head on a gutter outside Rozelle’s Three Weeds Hotel in a viral video showing the street fight on April 27.

His lawyer George Elias later said his client was hospitalized after the altercation with as many as five broken ribs and a suspected collapsed lung.